Monday, July 23, 2012

Boost your Genealogical Superpowers at the Springfield Family History Expo

Did you ever think about whether or not you have a genealogical superpower? It's a question that we toss out when we interview researchers for a spotlight over on our Genlighten.com site and it's one that I've been thinking about recently.

I'd like to think that I do. I'm pretty good at finding Chicago-related things at the Wilmette Illinois Family History Center--I can usually pull badly misspelled index entries out of the Illinois Statewide Death Index and there have been a few occasions when I've found Chicago death certificates that just didn't seem to be there--and people are always saying, "Ask Cyndy. She'll know."

Truth is, though, I don't have all the answers and I don't have any superpowers at all. When I am able to help people with tough research questions, it's just a matter of having learned what records are available and what information they generally include. A person looking for an early birth date for Chicago who wasn't familiar with all of the available resources would check the birth index, right? It's the logical approach! But someone who's used the records at the Family History Center extensively might also check the birth registers, the delayed birth index, church baptismal records, and maybe even Chicago Lying-in Hospital records.

So what does this have to do with the Illinois Family History Expo in Springfield? Well, it seems to me that spending a couple of days attending lectures by folks who are knowledgeable about their speaking topics is good way be exposed to new resources and new ideas and that seems like a good way to boost our research superpowers.

Case in point. A few years ago Dean went to a conference--I think it was National Genealogical Society conference, but I don't really recall--and brought home a thick volume of conference handouts. One day I picked it up and started reading. One of the lectures had been on United States passport applications--something I hadn't thought about. (They weren't yet on Ancestry.com at the time.) One of my most significant research finds--a photo of the woman I was researching--came about because of what I learned, albeit indirectly, from that conference.

So, if you're interested in attending, I don't want you to find yourself saying, "If I had only known about that ... "

Here's the scoop:

Family History Expo
Springfield, Illinois
August 3-4
Crowne Plaza Hotel

The keynote address will be given by Bernard E. Gracy, Jr, External CTO and VP Business Development, Volly at Pitney Bowes.

Ask-the-Pros will be available for Q&A

There is no cost for attending the keynote address or visiting the exhibit hall. Early registration for classes is $69, at the door $99, for a single day $59 or to attend any single class $20.

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About Me

I have a bachelor's degree in Japanese and a master's degree in reading instruction.
I'm a co-founder of Genlighten.com and I provide customer support for the site. I also offered research services in Chicago for 10 years focused on helping people locate genealogical records for Chicago and Cook County research.
If I'm not doing something genealogy-related, I'm probably playing the banjo or fiddle. I discovered old-time music in 2008 and it's become a very happy part of my life.